Insect Of The Day

[Deer Stalker]

Loads of Silver-studded Blues on the New Forest again today & this afternoon some Southern Damselflies.

[GuyF]

I was watching a number of Heath Tiger Beetles - Cicindela sylvatica today, they're very impressive insects and this was the first time I'd seen them.

If I was a small insect I certainly wouldn't want to come up against those jaws!
Guy

[Jason Green]

...nice shot, Guy!

I saw three Blaste quadrimaculata barkflies today which are rarely recorded, Bob Saville from the Barkfly Recording Scheme told me. That's five of them in a week! Elsewhere I saw a new fleshfly for me, possibly B. devia

[Pete Collins]

My Insect of the Day for yesterday was this Dark Green Fritillary, which I saw on Pitstone Hill, Bucks.

It's the first Fritillary that I've seen for 40-50 years.

[blacknest]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

Mine was another damn lily beetle..On my beautiful lily's..I seem to be picking one off a day.

Pretty beetles 'tho aren't they?

However many I remove they always manage to lay some eggs (little patches of elongated orange eggs, attached by one end usually to the underside of the leaf). Some eggs always hatch so I wash my lilies down with a hose once the larvae are visible: you get a fat little orangce grub surrounded by a nasty mush of pooey stuff as it munches through the leaf.
They will overwinter too , as white grubs and it helps to lift the bulbs in winter and clear out the grub-filled soil, replacing with fresh compost around the bulbs : worth doing certainly for lilies in pots & tubs.

In gardening...some ya win...some ya lose

[Pete Collins]

This morning I went to Ivinghoe Beacon, amongst other things hoping to see another Dark Green Fritillary like I did at nearby Pitstone Hill on Monday. I got lucky!

[Deer Stalker]

Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly from the Forest for me today.

[Jason Green]

I'll have to say the distinctive Heterotoma planicornis, eating a dead ant in my garden

[grymalkyn]

The female broad bodied darter I saw a couple of weeks back is still about and has found a mate. Both were darting over the pond yesterday, courting. He's the most beautiful blue, as in the majority of pix I found. Hope they have/do mate and we get more IDC

[acherontia]

Lots of insects about and very appreciated they are too!
A confirmation on these would be very welcome - I've only just started doing insects and the 'expert' (OH) is out.

I know the butterfly is a comma (you can see why) and I think the DF is a four spotted chaser?
Cheers!
Acherontia